https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-850-Toxic-Fungi-and-Tightvine-Tree-Beast/13455732/
Chapter 849: Grinding Points
Chapter 849: Grinding Points (Combined)
"Please show your Beastmaster Badge", the guard at the entrance to the Hidden Realm said.
The Hidden Realm is not just a place anyone can enter.
Firstly, ordinary people are not allowed to enter the Hidden Realm. Secondly, the higher the level of the Hidden Realm, the higher the requirements for the Beastmasters who wish to enter.
However, if someone doesn't meet the requirements but still wants to get in, there are many ways to do so.
With a bit of effort, there are always special-skilled familiars that can help.
Qiao Sang, Lin Shi, and Yuan Jiewen each handed over their Beastmaster Badges in turn.
The guard scanned them with the appropriate equipment and then let them pass.
Just as Qiao Sang was about to step inside, a voice called out from the side:
"Have you bought insurance? You must buy insurance before entering! Our Human-Beast Insurance..."
Qiao Sang didn't wait to hear the rest and stepped into the Hidden Realm.
Like a pebble thrown into a pond, her entry caused a brief ripple, but the barrier quickly restored its calm.
Everything went dark before her eyes.
A moment later, the scene cleared.
Qiao Sang found herself in a dense Thicket. Whether it was due to the lack of sunlight in the Hidden Realm or the dense trees blocking the sky, the area was dimly lit.
Fortunately, the faint light and Fangy's luminous Flame Wings allowed her to make out the surroundings.
There was no sign of anyone else, but the signs of battle were evident.
Crushed trees lay scattered haphazardly, leaves were strewn about, and several Venomfang Insects lay unconscious on the ground.
"Looks like the group in front of us just left", Lin Shi said.
The Hidden Realm is not always accessible. After one group enters, there must be a time gap before the next group can enter. Apparently, if too many people enter simultaneously, it could damage the Hidden Realm's portal.
Qiao Sang was about to speak when she suddenly perked up her ears, catching a movement from the right above.
"Ya Ya!"
At the same moment, Fangy also noticed the movement. Without waiting for her Beastmaster to give the command, it showed an excited expression, called out, and opened its mouth, releasing a dazzling Spinning Flame toward the right above.
"Venom Fang!"
With a blood-curdling scream, two charred figures fell from the tree.
Upon closer inspection, they were indeed Venomfang Insects.
This also brought Yuan Jiewen back to his senses from his daze.
He looked at the black-haired girl with a complex expression and then took out two anti-toxin masks from his backpack. "Put these on. There are many Venomfang Insects in this area, and their breath contains toxins, so the air here is poisonous. Wearing these will be safer."
He paused and continued:
"I didn't know our team would be three people, so I only brought two anti-toxin masks. You two can use them."
Qiao Sang, having been replenished by Lulu, was immune to even the potent toxins of a General-Class Beast Companion. The toxins of the Beginner Beast, Venomfang Insect, were nothing to her.
As she finished speaking, a rustling sound suddenly filled the air around them.
Damn... Qiao Sang looked up, her pupils narrowing, and she couldn't help but curse inwardly.
A large group of Venomfang Insects, their mouths open and venom fangs bared, emerged from all directions in an instant, filling the entire field of vision and surrounding them.
Despite having encountered a similar scene in the Supernest, the sudden appearance of a swarm of Bug Beasts still made her skin crawl.
Yuan Jiewen also looked up at the sky, his already pale face turning even whiter.
His familiar, a two-legged creature with a predominantly blue body and cat-like whiskers, holding blade-like shells in its claws, stepped forward with a serious expression, positioning itself in front of its Beastmaster.
Lin Shi looked up at the group of Venomfang Insects baring their fangs, her expression calm. Then, she seemed to think of something and took a step closer to Qiao Sang, her voice trembling slightly.
"Protect me."
"Treasure Seeker! Steel Treasure!" Qiao Sang called out loudly.
"Xunxun~"
Treasure Seeker appeared, its eyes glowing with blue light.
A Venomfang Insect with its venom fangs bared was hovering right above Treasure Seeker.
A drop of thick, purple toxin was about to fall from its fangs, just a centimeter away from Treasure Seeker.
Suddenly, an invisible force rippled out, freezing everything in place.
The toxin stopped in mid-air, no longer falling.
The Venomfang Insects were suspended in the air, trying to struggle but finding themselves completely immobilized. They all widened their eyes in panic.
"Steel Slash!"
Steel Treasure's body shuddered, and its feathers glowed with a purple light, instantly slicing out.
Countless purple feathers, like blades, tore through the bodies of the Venomfang Insects.
The Venomfang Insects were paralyzed by Psychic Power and had no chance to dodge.
"Venom Fang!"
"Venom Fang!"
One after another, the Venomfang Insects let out agonized cries.
After a minute of continuous slashes, Steel Treasure's wings spread wide, and all the purple-glowing feathers flew back to its body.
Treasure Seeker took a step back, avoiding the toxin above, and its eyes returned to their original golden hue.
The sky was filled with Venomfang Insects dropping to the ground, their eyes closed, all of them unconscious.
"Fangy."
Fangy looked at the scene and suddenly understood why his Beastmaster hadn't called him to attack. These creatures were just too weak...
If Steel Treasure's points were maxed out, it could directly evolve into a Steel Sword Falcon. These Venomfang Insects would be perfect for it to gain points... Qiao Sang looked at Yuan Jiewen and said, "I have some resistance to toxic types, so I won't need the anti-toxin mask. You two should wear them."
"Okay, okay..." Yuan Jiewen, staring at the ground covered with Venomfang Insects, felt his mind go blank and responded subconsciously.
As Beginner Beasts, Venomfang Insects weren't much of a threat to a C-Class Beastmaster, but even the weakest familiars could be dangerous in large numbers.
Many well-prepared teams would take at least a few minutes to deal with them.
But Qiao Sang had taken care of them in less than a minute, and all by herself... Yuan Jiewen looked at Qiao Sang, his eyes filled with awe as if he were looking at an unattainable expert.
He was wrong.
He had actually doubted that Qiao Sang had only brought him along to trick him into thinking she had a Healing Light familiar...
Lin Shi's eyes flickered with satisfaction, and she extended her hand toward Yuan Jiewen.
"Anti-toxin mask."
Yuan Jiewen snapped back to reality, retracted his gaze, and quickly handed over the anti-toxin mask.
"Which direction did you go last time?" Qiao Sang asked while they put on the anti-toxin masks.
"Over there." Yuan Jiewen pointed to the southwest direction.
Southwest, Hair-Liking Scorpion, which feeds on hair... Qiao Sang's mind flashed back to the information she had found last night. She glanced at the hair of her two teammates and asked, "Do you have wigs?"
Wigs? Lin Shi remained silent.
"Got it." Yuan Jiewen patted the backpack on his back.
As he spoke, he couldn't help but glance at the backpack on Qiao Sang's back, wondering what she could have packed in such a small bag. Even if it was all wigs, it couldn't hold more than a few, right?
Only then did Lin Shi speak up, "I didn't bring any."
Qiao Sang looked at her, "It's fine, just stay close to me."
Hair-Liking Scorpion, Intermediate Poison-Type Beast Companion. As long as they controlled one and attacked with another, they could handle it the same way they dealt with the Venomfang Insect.
Lin Shi nodded trustfully, "Mm-hmm."
Yuan Jiewen instantly understood that among the three of them, the main force of the team was likely the girl in front of him.
The three set off toward the southwest.
Qiao Sang was hesitant to have Treasure Seeker use Spatial Shift directly. If it was just her, it would be fine, but now she had a major client who could produce an S-Rank Ghost Tear. If they ended up in a place with wild beast companions, it could be problematic.
After all, Treasure Seeker had a history of such mishaps.
"Steel Slash."
Steel Treasure flew ahead, scouting and occasionally calling out to Qiao Sang to indicate that the path ahead was clear.
Qiao Sang remained cautious, carefully observing her surroundings.
Steel Treasure could only detect visible dangers. Many wild beast companions were hidden and wouldn't reveal themselves, like the Bog Golem in the northwest.
Fangy maintained her large form, her powerful presence causing weaker wild beast companions to steer clear, making their journey relatively safe.
"Steel Slash."
Suddenly, Steel Treasure called out, indicating that it had spotted a Hair-Liking Scorpion.
True to form, Steel Treasure had remembered the appearance of the Hair-Liking Scorpion from the previous night. Qiao Sang sensed the distance to Steel Treasure and said, "We'll be at the Hair-Liking Scorpion's territory in about 500 meters. Get the wigs ready."
"Got it." Yuan Jiewen quickly moved his backpack to the front, took out a yellow long wig, and put it on his head. He then held one in each hand.
Then he had an idea and handed a red long wig to Lin Shi, kindly saying, "Here, take this one."
Lin Shi looked at the red wig in his hand, then at the yellow wig on his head. After a few seconds of silence, she reached out and took it, "Thank you."
"You should put it on now. We'll be at the Hair-Liking Scorpion's territory soon", Qiao Sang urged, noticing that the major client hadn't put on the wig yet.
Lin Shi fell silent again, then handed the wig back, "Why don't you wear it? I don't think you brought one either."
The major client actually didn't bring a wig... Yuan Jiewen felt this was his chance to impress, so he reached into his backpack and prepared to take out another one.
"Who said I didn't bring one?" Qiao Sang looked at Treasure Seeker, "You can take them out now."
"Xunxun~"
Treasure Seeker removed the ring and quickly produced two wigs.
It handed the black one to its Beastmaster and put on a pink afro wig with practiced ease.
Seeing this, Yuan Jiewen silently withdrew his hand from his backpack.
"Put it on quickly", Qiao Sang urged again, "Among the three of us, you're the most likely to be attacked."
The major client only had an Advanced Chirping Frog, while Yuan Jiewen had a General-Class Beast Companion, Bladeclaw. Most wild beast companions were bullies and would pick on the weaker ones first.
Lin Shi was silent for a moment before putting the red wig on her head.
Qiao Sang was satisfied.
Soon, the three of them came upon a foul-smelling mud pit. Strands of hair in various colors floated on the surface, mostly black, and the bottom looked deep and dark, exuding a chilling and nauseating aura.
"Ice Ai..."
Lulu caught a whiff of the scent, her face contorting in disgust. She stretched out her claws and quietly pulled the zipper of her backpack a little tighter.
A few small hair scorpions lay on their sides beside the mud pit, their eyes fixed intently on Qiao Sang and his companions, as well as the Treasure Seeker's hair, seemingly unafraid of the intruders.
"Be careful, the Hair-Liking Scorpions are all hiding in this mud pit", Yuan Jiewen warned cautiously.
"Rumble, rumble, rumble..."
As if on cue, the surface of the mud pit began to boil, countless black bubbles bursting through the muck.
Then, one by one, dark red Hair-Liking Scorpions with hair that reeked of foul odors emerged, dashing straight for Qiao Sang and his companions, including the Treasure Seeker.
Yuan Jiewen quickly threw out wigs from his backpack, one after another.
The Hair-Liking Scorpions that were lunging at him abruptly changed direction, heading for the wigs instead.
At the same time, he pressed his Bladeclaw claws into the ground.
A water pillar about a meter in diameter suddenly shot up from the earth, like a thick water whip, lashing out at the cluster of Hair-Liking Scorpions gathered around the wigs.
"Xunxun~"
The Treasure Seeker playfully teleported around, dodging the attacks of the Hair-Liking Scorpions.
Lin Shi, her expression unchanged, took a step toward Qiao Sang, her voice trembling slightly:
"Protect me."
Qiao Sang threw his wig out and shouted, "Scorching Wind!"
The Hair-Liking Scorpions that were about to attack him instantly changed direction, heading for the wig instead.
"Ya Ya!"
Fangy opened her mouth, and a scorching, flame-infused gale immediately swept up all the Hair-Liking Scorpions in front of her.
Fangy had only reached the initial mastery level of Scorching Wind, but it was more than enough to deal with a group of intermediate pet beasts.
"Marvelous Hair!"
"Marvelous Hair!"
The dark red on the Hair-Liking Scorpions' bodies instantly turned to a bright red, and they screamed as they fell into the mud pit like a red rain.
"Fafa!"
The few small hair scorpions that had been preparing to attack were startled by the scene. They quickly scrambled and jumped into the mud pit.
"Big boss, that was amazing!" Yuan Jiewen's eyes lit up, and he instinctively reached out to pat Qiao Sang on the shoulder.
Big boss? Me? Qiao Sang glanced at him.
Yuan Jiewen, thinking the big boss was displeased with his action, quickly retracted his hand and got to the point: "Next, we just need to use a flying beast to get across, but be careful not to fly higher than ten meters, or we might attract attacks from other wild beast companions."
Lin Shi looked at Qiao Sang: "I don't have a flying beast."
Yuan Jiewen was taken aback.
As a member of the Hollow Plains, almost everyone had a flying beast. He had never imagined that the big boss's teammate would lack one.
"It's fine, we can just go directly", Qiao Sang said, then turned to the Treasure Seeker: "To the other side."
"Xunxun~"
The Treasure Seeker adjusted her slightly crooked wig, her eyes glowing blue.
In the next second, the group found themselves on the other side of the mud pit.
Spatial Shift? Yuan Jiewen was taken aback and couldn't help but ask:
"Big boss, why didn't we just move directly to the other side from the start?"
Because I wanted to earn points... Qiao Sang naturally accepted the title of big boss and explained: "If we had gone directly, the Hair-Liking Scorpions would have attacked us from behind. It's better to deal with them head-on first."
Yuan Jiewen's expression cleared, thinking to himself that the big boss's Spatial Shift must have a limited range.
(End of Chapter)
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